Complete coverage of the Angels minor leagues

This ‘N That

The Quakes’ Hot Stove is this Sunday at 5 PM. It’s at a new location, Etiwanda Gardens. Angels pitching coach Mike Butcher is the featured speaker, and Jered Weaver will be there to sign autographs.

The Kernels’ Hot Stove is Thursday January 21 at the Crowne Plaza Five Seasons Hotel. The featured speaker is Roland Hemond, the Angels’ first farm and scouting director (and friend of the FutureAngels.com web site). Former Cedar Rapids Reds outfielder Eric Davis, and Kernels’ 2008 manager Keith Johnson, will also be there.

The Travs’ Hot Stove is Tuesday February 5 at the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce. Travs manager Bobby Magallanes and Angels farm director Abe Flores will be there. The Travs event is free.

Speaking of Hot Stoves … What is a "Hot Stove"? Not everyone knows what it means. Think back to decades ago when people didn’t have central heating. Baseball fans would spend the winter sitting around a hot stove warming themselves while they talked about the game. That’s the origin of the term. You used to hear off-season baseball gossip referred to as the "Hot Stove League," although I haven’t heard that phrase in a while.

I’ve been working on the FutureAngels.com Database. What’s there now is just a toe in the water. Once I have five seasons of statistics in the database, I’ll start building search features for you to try.

The ongoing Statesville research project has picked up steam. I located another one of the players, but he’s very ill so I won’t mention his name to protect his privacy. I have leads for a couple more.

As I find them, inevitably I hear another round of crazy baseball stories. Again, not naming names, but I was told that one of the Statesville players was a bootlegger!

(Alcohol seems to be a running theme in these stories, a sign of the times …)

I’m starting to think that not only would the 1961 Statesville season make a great book, but it might make a great movie too. Bull Durham meets The Dukes of Hazzard.

Baseball America announces the Angels’ Top 10 Prospects list on Monday. They’ll also have an on-line chat. You can participate through their web site at BaseballAmerica.com.

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